Lottery Lightning Strikes Twice

Some people are lucky. Some people are very lucky. And then there is Edward Williams in a category all his own.

The Kansas man must have the lottery Midas touch, because the 47-year-old single fellow has struck it rich twice in a year. Last September, the Wichita resident won a cool $75,000 off a $10 scratch ticket. Good, but mere pocket change compared to his more recent windfall. Last Wednesday, lighting struck twice when he matched all the numbers in the Super Kansas Cash drawing and won a whopping $900,000."When I hit $75,000, I figured lightning struck once, it won't ever hit again," Williams said in a prepared statement released by Kansas Lottery officials, according to the Associated Press. "This one knocked me flat!"

In case you’re thinking of using Williams as a bit of lottery inspiration, think again. According to the folks at Webmath.com, you have a better shot at getting into a car or plane crash than striking it rich by chance. In fact, they offer a tool to help you calculate your lottery odds. For instance, if a lottery requires you to choose six correct numbers between one and 50, your chances of winning are ... one in 15.89 million. Yikes! By contrast, you only have about a one in 2 million chance of getting struck by lightning.

Of course, there are exceptions to every probability rule, and Williams seems to be the very definition of the exception. Not that he minds. The former Marine says he’s using the money to save for retirement. He’s worked at Johnson Controls, which makes car interiors, for the past 17 years and now plans to retire when he’s 55 ... which means the hard-worker still has eight years left.

And while the “experts” advise against pinning your hopes on lottery winnings, Williams can’t help but disagree.

"Just keep on playing," William recommends. "That's the best advice I have for other people looking for that big win.”

Photo courtesy of compose via stock.xchang